The dichotomous distinction between Annex I and Non-Annex I countries is inefficient for climate change negotiations and doesn't solve the purpose going forward, but unfortunately a path dependence on the status quo has made most people take it as a given, so said Professor Robert Stavins today in class.
He then described his hope that future climate change negotiations would vastly improve over the "QWERTY keyboard" of international climate negotiations.
As you might have guessed, nobody understood what he meant.
So he explained the history of the QWERTY keyboard, which he says if you think about, doesn't really make sense because if you wanted to type really effectively you should group the most used letters, the vowels, together. The early prototype typewriter actually attempted this. But the problem was, ("and I hope you understand what I am talking about or have at least seen a typewriter in a museum" he said), typewriters have keys that go up and down when you jab a button and it hits the ink ribbon that gets pressed on your paper, and these keys jam all the time, especially if you're typing quickly. So to solve the jam, they invented the QWERTY keyboard to separate the vowel keys and to actually slow down typists! And the only reason it's still being used in todays keyboards is because a status quo path dependence on the QWERTY had already been ingrained in everyone.
This was thrilling information in and of itself, which I think will last longer than my knowledge on climate change. I can just see myself at future dinner tables, passionately arguing that the inefficient size of wedding parties in Jakarta suffers from the QWERTY keyboard syndrome. The explanation that would follow will be so obscure and complex and geeky that people will (a) be dazzled by my faux intelligence and gaze at me in rapt admiration, or, (b) change the subject.
Yeah okay, scenario (b) is more likely.
He then described his hope that future climate change negotiations would vastly improve over the "QWERTY keyboard" of international climate negotiations.
As you might have guessed, nobody understood what he meant.
So he explained the history of the QWERTY keyboard, which he says if you think about, doesn't really make sense because if you wanted to type really effectively you should group the most used letters, the vowels, together. The early prototype typewriter actually attempted this. But the problem was, ("and I hope you understand what I am talking about or have at least seen a typewriter in a museum" he said), typewriters have keys that go up and down when you jab a button and it hits the ink ribbon that gets pressed on your paper, and these keys jam all the time, especially if you're typing quickly. So to solve the jam, they invented the QWERTY keyboard to separate the vowel keys and to actually slow down typists! And the only reason it's still being used in todays keyboards is because a status quo path dependence on the QWERTY had already been ingrained in everyone.
This was thrilling information in and of itself, which I think will last longer than my knowledge on climate change. I can just see myself at future dinner tables, passionately arguing that the inefficient size of wedding parties in Jakarta suffers from the QWERTY keyboard syndrome. The explanation that would follow will be so obscure and complex and geeky that people will (a) be dazzled by my faux intelligence and gaze at me in rapt admiration, or, (b) change the subject.
Yeah okay, scenario (b) is more likely.
